Futsal requires anaerobic power and capacity such as sprinting, sudden change of direction and jumping in the field. Many studies have shown that listening to music while warming up significantly improves anaerobic exercise performance [1,2,3,4]. Various training methods and ergogenic supplements are being researched to increase anaerobic performance. In a study, Chtorou et al. [2] found that power output increased in male sprinters during the 30-s Wingate Anaerobic Test (WAnT) after a 10-min warm-up with and without music. It has been reported in many exercises in the literature that methods such as warm up, stretching, music and visual feedback before competitions and training are necessary to improve athletic performance [2, 5,6,7,8,9,10]. Pre-exercise warm-up, a common technique, is defined as necessary to maximize the athlete's performance in a variety of sports and physical activities by changing the body's physiological mechanisms (muscle temperature, nerve conduction velocity, increased blood flow). In addition, the increased anaerobic metabolism induced by passive and active warm up may have metabolic, neurological, and psychological consequences, such as an increase in oxygen uptake kinetics and post-activation potentiation [11]. In addition, warm up before exercise or competition can enhance the effectiveness of muscle glycolysis and the breakdown of high-energy phosphates during exercise by increasing muscle temperature, muscular metabolism, and muscle fiber conduction velocity. This causes a positive increase in the activity of VO2 kinetics following the prior contraction of a muscle. Modulating the cross-bridge cycle rate and oxygen uptake kinetics can therefore increase muscle function [12].
Numerous sportsmen like listening to music during warm up and work out at a high level of intensity. However, research on the effects of music on athletic performance has yielded mixed results, with some suggesting that the timing and type of music may influence the anaerobic performance response [13]. Music is an external resource that can be used to enhance the ergogenic effect of a wide variety of exercise modes and intensities [14, 15]. Additionally, it has demonstrated that changes in the mood, motivation, warm-up speed, and arousal of music can result in performance gains [14, 16]. Preference for music has been shown to be a significant factor in determining music's ergogenic potential [14, 15]. However, how preference affects the aforementioned mechanisms, particularly during anaerobic exercise, is unknown. The relationship between music and anaerobic exercise has been studied primarily through the use of predetermined music, with mixed results [17,18,19]. Besides visual feedback, which is equally critical for athletic performance, can aid in determining peak performance throughout many types of strength and power testing, but its effect on anaerobic Wingate is worth investigating [20].
Various tests are used to evaluate anaerobic performance. The 30-s Wingate anaerobic test (WAnT) is one of the most commonly used tests to assess lower body anaerobic performance. WAnT is considered the gold standard test to evaluate anaerobic performance in many sports disciplines [21,22,23,24]. Other anaerobic tests can measure peak power; these tests are vertical jump tests, standing long jump test, and Bosco repeated jump tests [25,26,27].
Many studies have shown that listening to music while warm up significantly improves anaerobic exercise performance [1,2,3,4]. Studies have reported that listening to music provides an increase in peak and average power values in the 30 s WAnT performance [2, 4]. Brooks et al. [28] reported increases in peak and average power during the 2 × 30 s WAnT in performance with music compared to performance without music. Simpson et al. [18] reported that using music during a 400 m sprint has a positive effect on performance. A systematic review and meta-analysis showed that listening to music during WAnT may increase anaerobic exercise performance physiologically, although the reasons remain speculative [13]. However, other researchers' findings showed little or no improvement in anaerobic performance with warm-up music [3, 4, 17]. The reasons for the differences between the findings are not entirely clear. For this reason, it needs to be investigated.
Additionally, visual input has been shown to influence athletic performance [20, 29]. While visual feedback has been shown to be beneficial in determining the short-term maximum effort required to obtain the highest isokinetic force production, its effect on maximum force or power output in other types of tests has not been well explained [30]. Additionally, studies have demonstrated that the provision of visual feedback results in increased performance during short-term maximum test runs, which are typical of strength and power testing [31, 32].
With the results obtained from the WAnT, sports scientists and practitioners form the roadmap of athletes. It is very important that the WAnT, which provides very detailed information to determine the training programs of the athletes and the deficiencies in the athletes, is measured at the maximum level. In order to maximize the results of the tests, it is very important to try to increase the test performance output with feedback and music during the test. While additional research is needed to determine the impacts of music and visual feedback while warm up on WAnT performance, the preference of futsal players and a dearth of literature to support such an effect are deemed significant. The research that results in such a design can aid coaches in determining the most appropriate scenario and in utilizing visual feedback and music to improve futsal players' match readiness. Additionally, music and visual feedback can be used to improve the performance of WAnT values such as PPO, RPPO, MPO, RMPO, and FI. However, it is unknown whether warming music and visual stimuli affect WAnT performance and whether possible effects occur in psychological or psychophysiological mechanisms. Visual feedback and music while warm up may help elicit peak performance, but its effect during the WAnT in futsal players is unexplored. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the effects of music and visual stimulus on WAnT performance in futsal players. Our hypothesis was that music and visual stimuli will improve anaerobic performance.